Magneto.



' J. M. DINKINS & P. B. HAYS.

MAGNBTO.

APPLIoATIoN FILED Nov. 4., 1909.

1,014,622. i Patented Ja11.9,1912.

J. M. DINKINS z P. B. HAYS.

MAGNBTO.

APPLIGATION FILED Nov. 4, 1909.

1 014,622. Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

2 SHEHTS-SHEETZ.

faesses;

JOHN M. DINKINS 'AND FRANKLIN SIGNORS 0F FIFTY-THREE AND TAYLOR, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

BUSCH HAYS, 0F INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, AS-

ONE-THIRD ONE-HUNDREDTHS TO WILLIAM In;

MAGNETO.

l Specification of Letters Iatent. Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

Application led November 4, 1909. Sera No. 526,271.

lowing is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in magneto-generators for developing an electric spark for explosive engines, and the object of the invention 1s to greatly increasel the sparlcgenerating power of the magneto over those of the same size now inuse and to maintain a uniform spark at all of the varying speeds at which the engine may be run.

Another object is to permit the armaturey to lag while, passing through the magnetic field of force, and to cause it to recover its normal travel at t-he instant when the reversal of polarity is taking place in order to generate a greater volume of current at low speed than would be generated by a uniform travel of the armature, and thus insure a good spark when the engine is started by means of its crank.

The object also is to provide a magneto which will generate its spark with an equal eiiciency regardless of the direction of rotation of its armature, and so as to suit the conditions of any engine.

The object also is to eliminate brush contact by taking the current olf of the journal bearings, and the vobject also is to inclose the armature and magnets in a dustand water-proof case which will occupy but little space and which can be placed in almost any unoccupied position that is convenient.

A further object is to so construct the parts that the magnetic field 'may be shifted forward or backward, following the armature, to cause the spark to occur sooner or later wit-h relation to the action of the piston of the engine without any undue waste of magnetic force.

The object further is to so construct the parts that they may be changed iand renewed without expert adjustment and to simplify and cheapen the' construction in various ways which will be hereinafter fully described and pointed out in the appended claims.

We accomplish the objects of our inven- Of which the foition by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichi Figure 1 is a top plan view of our improved magneto. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of same on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a. transverse or horizontal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a like section on the line 4.-4 of Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 is a like section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2 in which the lines of force are diagrammatically represent-ed by the arrows.

Like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

6 represents the bedplate of an explosive engine, in connect-ion with which our magneto is used to ignite the hydrocarbon agent, 7 is the engine shaft, and 8 is a worm mounted on the shaft 7 and meshing with a worm wheel 9 on the lower end of the armature shaft 10 of our magneto. The magneto and its parts are supported by a bracket 11 which is secured in any suitable manner to the bedplate 6 of the engine. The shaft 1() is mounted within a. substantially cylindrical housing 12 and at the lower end of this lhousing is a suitable ball bearing journal inA which the shaft 10 rotates. The upper end of the housing 12 is expanded, and this exl panded portion has an upper annular flange 13 upon which the cylindrical walls 14 of the magneto casing are telescopically mounted in the manner clearly shown in Fig. 2. The cylinder 14 is externally screw threaded at its upper andvlower ends to receive the internally threaded coupling rings 15. The coupling rings 15 have inturned annular flanges to engage and hold the adjacent parts which are to be united to the cylinder walls 14 by said rings. Within the cylindrical walls 14 the magnets and armature of our magneto are mounted. Our per-` manent magnets are in three sections 16 (see Fig. 2) which are insulated from each other as shown at 17. These magnets are nearly complete annular disks, as clearly shown in Fig. 5, and are provided with soft iron polepieces, the inner walls of which cover an arc of degrees and are mounted within the magnets, diametrically opposite each other as shown in Fig. 5. The pole-pieces 17 are' held at a distance from the magnets to form an air gap 18 and are provided with extensions 19 which contact with thev inner cylindrical sides of the magnets 16 to which they are clamped by a pair of brass plates 20 and 21 and screws 22 in the manner clearly shown in the drawings. The opposite edges of the pole-pieces are connected and supported by a bridge 23 of brass. vThe clamp-plates 20 and 2l. serve to unite the pole-pieces 17 with the ends of the magnets, and they also serve to unite the magnet sections. Plates 25 and 26, preferably of brass, are placed ink contact with the upper and lower faces of the magnets and are secured in those positions by screws which enter suitable holes 27 in the extension 19 of the polepieces and in a suitable lug of the bridge plate 23. I'llhe lower plate 25 is provided with a handle extension 29 which entends through a slot in the expanded top or the housing 12 to the outside so as to be manually accessible for rotatively adjusting the magnets in order to vary the time of the spark in the cylinders of the engine,

rEhe upper. plate 26`is provided with an annular drum-like flange 30 which forms a l housing for parts which will be hereinafter described. Mounted within the drum 3() are the races and balls oit a ball bearing similar to that at the lower end oit housing 12 for shaft 10, previously referred to. This is to support the upper end ot the armature.

@ur armature is'comprised of a series ot soft iron plates 31. which are preferred 'for the purpose of reducing the heat tendencies and for increasing the electrical output, as is well known, and these plates are assembled between larger sott iron members 82 and allot the parts are united by screw bolts 33. This comprises the armature core of the usual lvl or shuttle type with the eX- ception that the members 35 are thickened so as to form blunt edges 36 which allows a greater magnetic fluir to iiow through the core oit the armature at the time ot the reversal of polarity which generates an eleotrical wave of greater int-ensity although ot shorter duration. in the advance and retard of the spark this wave itself is varied as to time by shift-ing the magnets by means of the handle 29.

lt is because of the above described peculiar construction ot our armature,r and also of the pole-pieces of our magnets that we are able to maintain a uniform spark atVJ all of the varying speeds ot the engine. llt is well known that the magnetic readjustment of the molecules of the pole-pieces is resisted by the friction caused by the natural cohesion of .the molecules and that this cohesion causes an appreciable magnetic lag. ll/Ve take advantage of these natural conditions by connecting the ends of the magnets with an adjacent edgeof the respective polepieces (here shown by the extension 19) which, as the armature approaches the polepieces from the direction 'of said extension noiaeaa 19 causes the magnetic rearrangement ot the molecules of the pole-pieces to begin at the extension 19. F rom long observation ot what takes place here in our magneto, the. following'appears to be true: that owing to the molecular cohesion and friction the magnetic rearrangement is resisted so that when the molecules at and near the edge 19 are magnetically rearranged these at the opposite edge oiE the pole-piece have not responded, and it the travel of the armature is sufficiently rapid, as when the engine is going at a high speed, it will pass by without allowing sucient time for the magnetic readjustment ot those remote molecules, and the result-ing current which would otherwise be proportionately increased with the increase in speed oit the armature will remain oit uniform and normal volume.

l/Ve have found. by actual use and observaremainder oit the pole-piece with accelerated speed.

-ille have shown in Fig. 2 one means of accomplishing the above result, which consists in making the shaft 10 in two transversely divided parts with a reduced end of one part entering a socket in the other, and a spirally wound spring 38 surrounding the two parts and having an end of the spring fastened to each of the two part-s of the divided shat. By thus making the armatureshaft 10 in two parts we are able to move the upper part on which the armature is mounted while the lower part remains unmoved, as when the engine is not running, by manually operating the handle 29. rl`his moves the magnets and the armature will :t'ollow by magnetic vattraction until the tension or the spring 38 overcomes the magnetic influlll@ ence when the armature will be quickly freeed from themagnets by the force ot .the spring,

thereby generating a current which will igqx nite a charge under compression 1n a cyllnl derl of the engine and thus obviate the usual necessity of cranking the engine by hand in order to start it.

The low tension current from the armature windingpasses through a conductor 3,9 to a sleeve t0 of metal in electrical contact with the upper ball-race. 'llhis upper ballrace and sleeve are insulated from the body of the machine as clearly shown in Fig. 2 but are in electrical Contact with a metal plate which is connected by a wire conductor 42 with one terminal of the primary and also one terminal of the secondary winding of an induction coil or transformer 43. The other terminal of the primary winding ot rae' the transformer 43 is in connection with the circuit breaker through the conductor 44, spring-bar 45 (see Fig. 4), and insulated terminal 46 of the circuit-breaker. This terminal 46 has a platinum Contact with a like contact point ofthe other member 47, which member 47 is grounded with the body of the machine. The circuit is completed through the body 32 of the armature which is connected at 48 (see Fig. 2) with the other terminal of the armature winding. l

The member 47 of the circuit breaker is a lever which is pivoted at 50 and has a lug 51 which extends through the casing in which the mechanism of the circuit-breaker is mounted, into the path of the bent ends 52 vof a rotary and diametrically mounted arm on the sleeve extension 53 of the armature, whereby the circuit is broken twice at each revolution of the armature at the maximum pointof intensity of the electrical impulses which are being generated. The lever 47 is held normally in Contact by means of a spring 5,4. A condenser 56 (see Fig. 2), is bridged across the terminals ofpthe circuit-breaker, one of its terminals being grounded to the machine at 57 and the other terminal being connected at 58 with the spring-bar 45.v The purpose of this condenser is to intensify the inductive influence in the secondary winding, and to reduce sparking between the platinum contacts of the circuit-breaker. Wound upon the soft iron core 30 is the primary' winding of a transformer 43 and outside of this primary winding is the secondary or high tension winding ofsmaller wire one terminal of which Lis connected by the wire conductor 42 f with the upper journal-bearing of the armature as previously described, and the other terminal of the secondary winding is connected with a spring-conductor 59 which is in electrical contact with the binding post 60. The binding-post 60 is connected by the conductor 61 with a binding post 62 of a distributer mounted in the cap of our machine. This binding posthas a stem 63 which is pressed by a spring 64 into constant contact with a spring-plate 65. the outer end of which plate 65 is made to sweep the segments 66 mounted on vthe inner side of the cap 67. The cap 67 is a non-conductor while the segments are conductorsthe area of which is shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. These segments are electrically connected with the binding posts GS from which the current is conducted to the engine cylinders in the usualvmanner.

We will nov7 describe'the mechanism by which the travel of the spring plate is timed to transmit e broken current to the proper terminals of a four or of a six cvlinder engine. It is understood from what has been said that the circuit is broken twice A L65 for each revolution of the armature, so that for each complete sweep or circuit of travel of the spring plate 65 against the four segments 66 in circuit with the four engine cylinders, the armature must have made two complete revolut-ions. To accomplish this requirement mechanically we provide a spur wheel 72 which is here shown as having its arbor 73 revolubly inserted within the hollow sleeve 53 of the armature, where its notched lower end is locked by engagementwith a cross bar 74 to cause the gear wheel 72 to rotate with said armature. The wheel 72 is mounted within a gear case 75 having circular walls, and also mounted in said gear case is a ring 77 withinternal cogs. This vcogged or toothed ring 77 is just twice the diameter of the wheel 72, and the latter is drivingly connected with said annular gear by the intermediate pinions 78. It" is thus obvious that the ring 77 will rotate once for each two revolutions of the spur wheel 72. Mounted in a fixed, but removable manner on the toothed ring 77 is a plate 79 and upon this plate a block of insulation 80 is mounted and upon the block is the spring bar 65. By the above arrangement the bar 65 will make one complete revolution or sweep at each two revolutions of the wheel 72 and its armature. Now, by mountingthe two intermediate pinions 78 on a ring 82 which may be released by removing the holding screws 83, said ring, being mounted in a suitable groove in the bottom of the gear case, and by locking the ring 77 to the wall of the gear case by inserting a screw in the hole 86 (see'Fig. 3) and by also releasing the plate 79 from the ring and securing the plate to the lugs 84 of the ring 82, the interediate pinions 78 when rotated by the gear 72 willrock back on the toothed ring 77 to a certain extent so that the resulting forward travel of the plate 79 complete revolution to each three revolutions of the armature. Six electric impulses or sparks will be developed under this last adjustment, at each revolution of-tlie plate will amount to oneI 79, and therefore of the spring plate 65 carried by'it. These impulses will be evenly distributed to six segments in the insulated cap 67 and thence to the respective cylinders" of la six cylinder engine. The drawing shows a. cap with binding posts and segments fora four cylinder engine and for a six cylinder engine this cap will have to be replaced by one having six segments and a corresponding number of binding posts.

The relation of one half diameter between wheel (7 2 and internally toothed ring 77 will cause the plate 791carried by ring 77, and its spring bar 65, to make one complete revolution for every two revolutions of the wheel 72, when the plate 79 is fastened to the ring 77 and the latter is free to move independently of the case in which it is mounted; but' when the ring 77 is held a'gainstrotation by being fastened to its case and the plate 79 is released from the ring 77, but is fastened to the ring 82 on which the intermediate pinions 78 are mounted, there will be a loss in the advancement of theplate 79, which will require the ring 7 2 (and the armature to which it is attached) to make three 4complete revolutions for each single revolution of the plate 79. Consequently,.with our magneto, six electric impulses will be devloped during each revolution of the plate 7 9, and by providing a cap with six segments and six binding posts, six cylinders may be connected andl sparked with the same efiiciency as tour would be under the conditions herein first described.

lt will be noted that our magneto is put together with coupling rings throughout, and that all of the parts are readily detachable so as to permit of ready access without special tools whereby even an inexperienced person will be able torenew `worn or broken parts. lt will also be noted that our magneto is housed in a casing which is practically dust and water-proof, thus eliminating many of the troubles due to those agencies in other' magnetos, and it will also be noted that all parts of our apparatus are assembled in a compact and convenient manner, and while we have shown our preferred embodiment of our invention as now knownto us, we do not desire to be limited to the exact construction and arrangement ot parts here shown and described by us, but

lll/'hat we claim as new and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising 'a magnet having a magnetic iield, an armature in said field, means tor moving said lield, means for producing a torque upon the armature by the movement of the tieldwhich will overcome the attraction between the armature and field and move the armature to generate electricity.'

2. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising a magnet having pole-pieces, an armature between said pole-pieces,

y means for manually moving the magnet,

means for producing a torque upon the armature by the movement of the magnet which will overcome the attraction between the armature and magnet and move the armature to generate electricity.

3. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising a magnet having pole-pieces 'which are segments of a cylinder connected at one of their ends with the poles of the magnet and separated by an air-gap from the magnetv for the remaining major portions of said pole-pieces, means for manually moving the magnet, an armature between saidv pole-pieces, and resilient means for producing a torque upon the' armature by the movement of the magnet which will inmensa overcome the magnetic attraction between the magnet and armature and move the armature. I

4. An electric. spark producing apparatus comprising a magnet having a magnetic field, an armature in said field, means for moving said field, means for producing a torque upon the armature by the movement of the ield which will overcome the attraction between the armature and the ield and move the armature to generate electricity, said armature having a core of the shuttle type, the heads of which are thickened on their sides to form blunt longitudinal edges to increase the magnetic attraction between the armature and magnet and thereby increase the torque.

5. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising a magnet having separate pole-pieces which are segments ot a cylinder connected at one of their ends with the ends of the magnet and separated by an air-gap from the magnet for the remaining major portions ot said pole-pieces, means for manually moving the magnet, an armature rotating between said pole-pieces having a core of the shuttle type, the heads of which core are thickened uniformly on their sides to form blunt longitudinal edges, and resilient means for producing a vtorque upon the armature by the movement of the magnet which torque will eventually move the armature at starting.

6. An electric spark producing apparatus`comprising a magnet having pole-pieces which are segments oif a cylinder connected at one of their ends with the ends of the magnet and separated by an air-gap from the magnet for the remaining major portions of said po-le-pieces said magnet also having a handle for manually shifting its positions, an armature rotating between said pole-pieces, a shaft on which said armaturev is mounted said shaft being in two transversely divided parts and resilient means 'for connecting said shaft-parts to produce a torque upon the armature by the movement ot' the armature when the magnet is moved by means of said handle whereby the torque will eventually move the armature at starting.

7. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising a rotary movable magnet having a handle for manually moving said magnet, an armature rotating between the poles of the magnet, a shaft on which said armature is mounted, said shaft having resilient means to permit the producing of a torque on they armature when the magnet is moved by its handle and to move the armature with accelerated speed at starting.

8. An electric spark producing apparatus comprising a rotary movable magnet having a handle for manually moving said magnet, an armature rotating between the rimase?.

poles of the magnet, a shaft on which said armature ismounted saidshaft being in two transversely divided parts, a spring connecting the two parts of the shaft to permitthe producing of a torque upon the armature when the magnet is moved yloy its handle and to move the ,armature with. accelerated speed at starting. I

9. An electric spark `producing apparatus comprising a rotary movable magnet having a handle for manually moving it, an armature rotating between the poles of the magnet, resilient means in the .armature shaft which will'permit the armature to be moved by the movement of the magnet thus -producing a torque by putting said resilient means under tension, to produce a good spark at'starting. f

l0. An electric tus comprising a rotary'movablel magnet having a handle for manually moving it,

van armature rotating between the polesof the magnet having a core withinwardly thickened heads forming longitudinal blunt edges, resilient means in the armature shaft 'which will permit the armature'to be moved by the movement of the magnet thus producproduce a spark producing appara-- ing a torque by putting said resilient means under tension, to produce a good spark at starting.

11. An electric spark producing appara: tus comprising a rotary movable magnet having a handle formanually moving'it, an Y armature rotating between the poles ofthe magnet having a core4 with inwardly thickened heads forming longitudinal blunt edges, a shaft on which said armature is mounted said shaft being in two transversely divided parts and resilient means connecting the two parts of the shaft to permit the armature -to beA movedby the movement of the magnet thus producing a torque by putting said resilient means under tension, to good spark at starting. v

In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands andjseals at Indianapolis, lindiana, this, 16th day of October, A. D. one .thousand nine hundred and nine.

JOHN M. DINKNS. [1.. 8.] FRANKLIN BUSCH HAYS, [L. s]

Witnesses:

F. W. WOERNEB, L. B. WOERNER. 

